Major broadcast networks rely on attracting as many eyeballs as possible in order to maximize revenues in a traditional advertising climate. But that model, while not completely obsolete, may fall victim to a new generation of viewers that do not want the broadcasters to dictate where and when they watch their preferred entertainment.

 

Many exhibitors at IBC are focusing on the personal TV experience, looking for ways to deliver the content down to screens where maybe only a single pair of eyes can view comfortably. This move, driven by a generation raised on portable entertainment that began with music and now has extended rapidly into video, presents a pair of complex challenges for the broadcasting industry.

 

The first challenge is to develop new ways to deliver the content to multiple platforms. Hardware and software manufacturers along the broadcast chain are working on this problem, with some moving ahead of their competition and ready to capture the first slices of revenue that come from broadcasters looking to evolve their distribution models. The second challenge is for the broadcasters themselves to figure out how to meet the demands of these new content consumers while not cannibalizing their own revenue models.

 

At the moment, the technology looks like the easy part of this equation.